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Section 2

Specific Plan Introduction

2.10 Detailed specific plan purposes

The purpose of the North Star Specific Plan is to:

1. Single Family and Multiple Family Residential consisting of up to 2,140 units located on approximately 312 acres with the following land use mix according to the Master Plan:

a. Affordable housing: 180 zero lot line (multiple family) affordable dwelling units ranging in size from about 650 SF to 900 SF.

b. Workforce housing: 667 single family dwelling units with and approximate lot size of 35' of frontage and 100' deep, ranging in size from about 950 SF to 1,600 SF.

c. Community/Professional housing: 981 single family dwelling units on lots 60' wide and 100' deep or larger, ranging in size from about 1,500 SF and up.

d. Senior housing: 146 dwelling units of multiple family units.

e. Condominiums: 60 condominium units, consisting of multiple family dwellings located on the second and third floors of buildings in the North Star Community Neighborhood Center, ranging in size from about 1,800 SF to 3,000 SF.

f. Medium Density Golf Course Villas: 106 multiple family villas adjoining the golf course, ranging in size from about 1,500 SF to 3,000 SF.

a. K-8 School site consisting of 9 acres, to be deeded to the Grass Valley School District.

b. Multi-generational Community Center site consisting of 6-7 acres.  This site is intended to be developed with public use facilities by a non-profit or appropriate agency.  Uses may include multi-purpose areas, tennis courts, and a community swimming pool.

c. Amphitheater site to be dedicated to the City of Grass Valley for public use.

d. Baseball Park to include four regulation baseball or softball fields.

e. Central Mine Shaft Community Park and Community Park, consisting of a total of about 12 acres, and will include tot lot playground equipment and preserved historic buildings.  This acreage includes the Multi-generational Community Center (Item b, above).

f. Woodland Preserve Community Park, consisting of about 15 acres where passive trail and picnic areas will be integrated with preserved natural vegetation and specimen trees.

g. Neighborhood Parks as shown on the Master Plan, which may include benches and playground equipment.

h. Pocket Parks as shown on the Master Plan, serving as small park areas in the immediate neighborhood and also serving as storm detention facilities where possible using best management practices (BMP=s).

i. North Star House consisting of approximately 13 acres of land including the Julia Morgan designed North Star House, Hague House, and companion buildings, with the main objective to conserve and restore North Star House and move it toward a community oriented adaptive reuse.

j. Hospice of the Foothills site consisting of 5 acres adjoining North Star House as a site where hospice can create needed facilities to carry out its non-profit mission.

Fire Station site to be dedicated to the City of Grass Valley.

a. 18 hole Golf Course with approximately 6,800 yards, operating as private in the mornings and public in the afternoons.

b. A regulation Driving Range east of the golf course.

c. A membership Club House including a pro shop, locker rooms, and dining facilities.

d. Swim and Tennis Center, open for membership to all area residents.

e. Open Space and Green belts including 50' wide buffers around most project property lines, to include public trails.  Dual surface trails will be constructed parallel to Allison Ranch Road and Old Auburn Road to connect various project and surrounding areas.

f. Wolf Creek corridor open space, located between Allison Ranch Road and Wolf Creek consisting of about 25 acres and allowing trails.

g. The Grassland and Wet Meadow Preserve which will be preserved in a natural state adjacent to the golf course.

Please note that additional parcels owned by others will be contained in the annexation area boundary.  These parcels will be prezoned OP-Office and Professional under the City's zoning ordinance, consistent with the Grass Valley General Plan.  They are not a part of the specific plan.  The above acreages do not add to 760 acres because some of the gross area is included in road rights-of-way that are not included by the Nevada County Assessor.

Please see the following figures for additional location information:

Figure 2.1 Location Map

Figure 2.2 General Plan Setting

The Specific Plan area, at the time of the plan preparation, is located outside of the city limits of Grass Valley and is within the jurisdiction of the County of Nevada. The Specific Plan anticipates that the property will be annexed to the City prior to development. The following agencies have jurisdiction over various components of the future development of North Star:

1. City of Grass Valley: Planning, zoning, and building permit approvals
2. Sewer Service
3. Water Service where not provided by NID
4. Fire Protection
5. Other Administrative Services
6. Coordination of Transportation Improvements and Fees with Nevada County
7. County of Nevada: Coordination of Transportation Improvements and Fees with Grass Valley
8. Provision of County-wide services, including courts, jails, District Attorney, Assessor, Tax Collector, Auditor/Controller, and libraries
9. Review and approval of any related activities in the unincorporated areas surrounding the Specific Plan Area
10. Nevada Irrigation District: Water service, where not provided by the City of Grass Valley
11. Cal-trans: (California State Department of Transportation) Review and approval of any improvements involving State Highways
12. LAFCo (Nevada County Local Agency Formation Commission) Review and approval of the annexation of the Specific Plan area to the City of Grass Valley, detachment of the area from Nevada County Consolidated Fire District, and possible annexation of portions of the area to Nevada Irrigation District
13. State Department of Fish and Game: Review and approval of any improvements involving stream crossings or wetland impacts
    
14. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers: Review and approval of any improvements impacting wetlands
    
15. California Department of Forestry: Wildland Fire Protection until development under a contract with the City of Grass Valley, funded by the property owners
    
16. State Water Quality
17. Control Board: National Pollution Discharge Elimination Permit, for the prevention of sediments and other discharge to surface waters, using best management practices for erosion control

2.40 Planning area information and environmental description

The North Star Specific Plan includes land that has historically been used for hard rock gold mining and, in more recent years, for timber and aggregate production. The North Star's rich history began when gold was discovered on Lafayette Hill, southwest of Grass Valley in 1851. It was named the North Star in 1860. The mine went through periods of bust and boom, but overall was a major producer of gold. The mine utilized compressed air from the 32 foot diameter Pelton Wheel now housed at the North Star Museum on Allison Ranch Road. Gold was extracted using a 60 stamp mill. The central shaft of the North Star is more than 4,000 feet deep.

The mine employed hundreds of Nevada County workers over its history and produced tons of gold. It was originally managed by the Foote family. They entertained mine owners and guests in the Foote Mansion, designed by Julia Morgan, the pioneer architect that designed much of Hearst Castle.

In later years, the property was owned by Boyce Thompson Institute and maintained as an experimental forest. The Amaral and Robinson families purchased the land in 1972 through their respective companies: Terra Alta Development Company and Robinson Enterprises, Inc. Continuing their long term contribution to the resource based employment of the region, the families use the land for timber production.

The property adjoins the City of Grass Valley in the north, at the area around Highway 20 and the Nevada County Fairgrounds. The property to the west is largely owned by the Conway family and has been utilized for pasture and recently has been developed to include a nine hole golf course and driving range. Future development of the Conway property is expected. Wolf Creek runs southerly along the eastern boundary of the property. The City's wastewater treatment plant is located east of Wolf Creek near the northern portion of the property. Beyond Wolf Creek lies retail and residential development, including Pine Creek Center and the Carriage House and Gazebos subdivisions.

Most other adjoining property is developed in a rural lot pattern with lots ranging in size from under an acre to about forty acres. Many of these parcels are developed with single family homes. The property has rolling topography in the Yellow Pine Life Zone of the Sierra Nevada Foothills. A few areas are over 30% cross slope, but most areas are more moderate. The property has many remnants of the large scale mining that occurred, including a number of buildings in various condition and a number of mine shafts.

Please refer to the Specific Plan Environmental Impact Report, incorporated into this Specific Plan by reference, for additional information on the physical, service, cultural resource, and planning setting of the property.

2.50 Statement of whether the document is policy or regulatory by application

This Specific Plan is both a policy and regulatory document. It includes basic goals, objectives, and policies to provide vision on the City's intentions with respect to the development of the property.

The Specific Plan incorporates all of the applicable goals, objectives, and policies of the City's 1999 General Plan, incorporated herein by reference. By law, this plan's provisions must be consistent with the General Plan in every way.

This Specific Plan is also a regulatory document. The specific plan zoning districts recited in Section 3 are intended to be the final zoning for the property. The development performance standards and design guidelines supercede any similar zoning districts or design standards in Grass Valley, and these standards and guidelines were specifically designed and adopted by the City to apply to the Specific Plan area.

2.60 Statement of how the plan's policies and/or regulations accomplish the objectives of the plan

The zoning regulations, performance standards, and design guidelines implement the applicable goals, objectives, and policies of the Grass Valley General Plan 1999, and also the goals, objectives, and policies of this Specific Plan. These standards translate the broad visions of all of the goals, objectives, and policies into firm regulations assuring that the project will be constructed in an appropriate manner.

2.70 Relationship of the specific plan to the general plan

This Specific Plan for North Star is intended to implement the Grass Valley General Plan, adopted in 1999. By law, the goals, objectives, policies, zoning requirements, performance standards, and design guidelines must be consistent with the General Plan. All of the applicable goals, objectives, policies, and visions of the General Plan are incorporated herein by reference.

2.80 Relationship of the specific plan to neighboring plans and those of other jurisdictions, regional agencies, and the State

There are no other specific plans in the immediate area of North Star. The City of Grass Valley has completed other specific plans for Whispering Pines and Morgan Ranch. The City Planning staff is familiar with the use of the specific plan as a zoning document.

North Star is currently designated on the Grass Valley General Plan as a "special development area" requiring completion of a specific plan prior to development. The General Plan recognizes the land use mix specified in the project annexation agreement.

Until annexation, the land is governed by the general plan and the land use and development code of the County of Nevada. The land use mix of the specific plan is very similar to the County's intended land use. The basic housing unit count is identical, but the City's General Plan mix includes minor increases in the acreage allowed for retail commercial and business park.

2.90 A list of projects required by law to be consistent with the specific plan

Under the Specific Plan, the basic zoning criteria (land uses, setbacks, parking requirements, minimum lot size, and so on), performance standards, and design guidelines will be as shown in the specific plan. Streets and utilities will be installed in accordance with the infrastructure plan, Section 4 of the Specific Plan. All other aspects of land use will be covered by the City of Grass Valley existing ordinances, include the processing and administration sections of the zoning ordinance and the subdivision ordinance. It is anticipated that the following types of planning approvals will rely on the Specific Plan in conjunction with other City ordinances:

• Development Agreements
• Subdivision and Parcel Maps
• Commercial or Industrial Site Plans
• Multi-Family Site Plans
• Public or Quasi-public Site Plans
• Conditional Use Permits
• Administrative (ie: Home Occupation) Permits

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